South Korea national soccer team head coach Jürgen Klinsmann (GER) said he was “very happy” with “Golden Boy” Lee Kang-in’s (Paris Saint-Germain) A-match debut goal performance.
When asked about Lee’s performance at the official press conference for the Hana Bank Invitational Friendly Match between South Korea and Vietnam at Suwon World Cup Stadium in Suwon, Gyeonggi-do, on Saturday, Klinsmann said, “He played very well, it was a fantastic performance,” and added, “I’m very happy.”
Lee scored two second-half goals to lead South Korea to a 4-0 victory over Tunisia in an exhibition match at the Seoul World Cup Stadium on Sept. 13.
Three days later, when Klinsmann appeared in front of the media again, he smiled when asked about Lee Kang-in and said, “I think he will take a step forward and mature after this game.” “Both Lee Kang-in and Lee Jae-sung are players who can play on the flanks and in the center, and when Son Heung-min comes back, we have to figure out how to combine them,” he said.
When asked about Lee’s performance against Tunisia, Klinsmann said that he was more effective on the right flank than he was in the center of the pitch. “With the 4-2-3-1 formation, we are constantly rotating our attacking players,” he said. “Even if you start on the left, you can switch to the center or the right.”
“It’s the transition to defense that’s important,” he added, “We give them the autonomy to be creative and give 100 percent of themselves in attack, but when they lose the ball, they need to be able to transition to defense in an empty space or in their own half.”
“Against Tunisia, the players did this well, and I could see Lee Jae-sung talking a lot with Lee Kang-in to position him,” he said, “and I was also pleased with their efforts and growth on the defensive side, especially in the second half when Lee Kang-in cleared the ball out of the defensive penalty area.”
Lee Jae-sung (Mainz), who was also present at the press conference, explained the positioning change against Tunisia by saying, “I heard that (Lee) felt more comfortable playing on the right side of the field recently, both for his club and at the Asian Games.” “It wasn’t a decision we made, but the coach gave us that kind of autonomy, so we talked amongst ourselves and switched positions a bit,” he said.
“I think it’s the role of the second strikers to figure out where they can play better when looking for such combinations in the future,” Lee said.
On the other hand, Lee Jae-sung said, “The atmosphere of the squad is good because we played well against Tunisia.” “The players are also well-rested, so we will prepare for tomorrow’s game without relaxing,” he said.
“We need to prepare well mentally and focus more on our shooting and passing, as we may face difficulties when facing weaker opponents,” Lee Jae-sung said, adding, “We will play like a real team to gain experience for the second qualifier.” 스포츠토토